Jackie Journey and Pete Kaminsky from Jackie Draws a Straight

Heroine

Full name: Jackie Elaine Theresa Journey

Education: Jackie is newly graduated with an RN degree from Mary Hardin Baylor (Austin), as well as an X-ray tech cert.

Occupation: She’s a nurse.

Geography: Jackie lives on Journey’s End ranch with other members of her family.

Economics: The Journey family is old money but not exactly rich. The whole family has a strong work ethic, and there are no laggards. Jackie has never had a job outside of babysitting as a teenager. She has lived on an allowance while going to school (not a huge amount of money, but sufficient if she budgets intelligently).

Family members: Jackie’s father is Leo Journey; her mother, Cassie Journey (deceased). Jackie is the youngest member of the family. She has four siblings: Ace (17 years older), Deuce (14 years older), Queenie (11 years older), Trey (9 years older).

Family History: The Journeys own an inherited ranch in rural Sutton County, Texas–3rd generation, 249,380 acres. Jackie grew up on the ranch. Jackie is the youngest of the family and has been spoiled by all her siblings and her father. They are all making allowances for the loss of her mother when Jackie was only 2.

Strengths: Jackie loves homemaking. She sews well, is a good decorator (fashion sense), and can bake well.

Quirks, idiosyncracies and foibles: Jackie can be very stubborn–even pig-headed–and is somewhat spoiled by being the baby of the family. Unfortunately, this makes her her own worst enemy. She has been “saving herself” for marriage as well.

Likes and dislikes: She likes: flowers, small animals, children, cooking, reading, taking long walks. And dislikes: being thwarted, being argued with, people who talk down to her because she’s short.

Goal in this story: Jackie wants to be a wife and mother, but she knows she’s young, so she wants to establish a good job and meet elegible Texas men.

Hero

Full name: Peter “Pete” Walter Matthew Kaminsky

Age: 30

Height: 6′

Weight: 180

Hair color: Medium brown, a little long and scruffy.

Eye color: Dark blue.

Education: Pete got his BS in Chemistry, and went to medical school at UT Houston Medical School.

Occupation: General practice/family practice MD.

Geography: Pete comes from Lubbock, Texas, where his family settled. He’s a Texas boy, though from a relatively large city.

Economics: He had a typically middle-class upbringing. The family was conservative with their money, but his father was a chemist for Bayer so they didn’t have hard times. As a GP, Pete makes decent money while working in a hospital setting, but on his own as a rural GP, he’s not going to get rich.

Family members: His father is Ralph; mother, Wisia. He has two brothers, Case (2 years younger), and James (4 years younger), and a sister, Penny (7 years younger). That makes him the oldest sibling.

Family History: Pete’s grandparents were both Polish immigrants during the USSR period. His father became a chemist, and his mother is a housewife. The family settled in Lubbock where his father worked for Bayer. They’ve embraced Texas strongly, but have never forgotten their Polish roots.

Strengths: Pete has a great bedside manner and is a terrific diagnostician. He also is able to sing quite well in a strong baritone. He’s a pretty straightforward man, and has not been into punishment spankings of his girlfriends before meeting Jackie.

Quirks, idiosyncracies and foibles: He wants to live in the country because he thinks people are friendlier and wants that neighborly feeling and the wide open scenery. He does not suffer fools gladly.